Anne Hathaway for “The Princess Diaries 2”

With regular DH LA correspondent off on holiday in Australia, the awesome Robert Sanchez over at IESB has been gracious enough to help out and covered the press junket for the “Princess Diaries” sequel the other day for his site and DH. Here’s his interview with lead star Anne Hathaway:

Question: In the movie to take a lot of pratfalls that don’t look choreographed. In real life have you ever had moments like that where you’ve been embarrassed because something like that happened?

Answer: Just last week, actually. I’m working on a film right now (Brokeback Mountain) and I was walking out of my trailer and I stumbled down off the first step and kind of caught myself because the back of my dress snagged on the railing so I was literally hanging there suspended. There was a whole group of people watching so I tried to make an entrance. I was like ‘look at the dress I’m wearing’. I was doing a costume fitting and like duh oh, I was caught up.

Question: So you’re like that in real life?

Answer: Yeah. It’s not that well-kept a secret. I am a klutzy, klutzy klutz.

Question: How are you getting on with Jake and everyone?

Answer: Honest to God everyone on that set is so lovely. I’ve only been there for a little bit. I wasn’t there for the main brunt of shooting, especially because of more difficult locations to get to but everyone’s been really lucky. I’ve been talking to the hair and make-up people and they said, there’s so many young actors and nobody has attitude so that’s nice.

Question: Do you feel like Julie Andrews is a mentor to you on this film or the first?

Answer: On both. Just observing her, you learn so much about what it means to be a graceful person, what it means to be elegant, what it means to be the epitome of loveliness. The thing that I learned about her in the second one….I’m an ungrateful little actor so I would show up and be like ‘oh, I didn’t sleep last night. I’m working every single day on this movie. My coffee isn’t hot enough…blah!’ I was very much acting my age and Julie would come on set every day and go ‘aren’t we lucky to be here?’ And I just looked at her and all of a sudden I was like, ‘you know what? That’s my mantra. Everywhere I go I’m lucky to be there because I’m alive.

Question: Did you have input into this script and how your character would change?

Answer: Yeah, a lot.

Question: I imagine you’ve changed a lot too.

Answer: I have and that was something I was a little nervous about was getting to play a 21-year-old in a G-rated movie. I thought that might not work out too well or yield the most honest results but because I was given a lot of input on the character, the way she speaks, what she believes in, what’s influencing her, it all worked out pretty well. It also helped that, by virtue of Genovia, a lot of the work was done for me because she is a non-conformist ruler in that she challenges a lot of established rules, particularly involving the patriarchy but she wasn’t going to show up in fishnet tights and orange hair. That’s not in her personality.

Question: Did you get to keep any of the wardrobe?

Answer: None. Not a bit. It is old-fashioned but I like pieces. You know the pink dress that she wears when she meets Nicolas? Imagine the pink coat with jeans. There were pieces I would have loved to have had but Disney wouldn’t let me.

Question: You look great in red, like that red ball gown.

Answer: Thank you. That’s another piece I would have loved to have had just as an archive but you can’t get everything.

Question: Did the costumes and jewelry actually transform you into feeling royal?

Answer: No. Royalty is based solely on birth. But what people’s general impression of what royalty is, somebody who is elegant, and confident and strong and gracious, I guess clothes can certainly help that but all those things should be inside of you. You should be standing stark naked and be all those things. But, in terms of a film, they certainly help present the illusion and it’s nice because people don’t have to use their imaginations that much.

Question: In real life would you have gone for the gourmet cook cute guy or the solid, secure tweedy guy?

Answer: I don’t know. Honestly they both have strong points for, for me, I wouldn’t have really gone for either of them.

Question: How is Havoc doing?

Answer: I don’t know. Last I heard, they were editing. No one’s told me anything. I hope it comes out.

Question: There are so many books coming out about royalty, magazine articles. Have you read any books on royalty?

Answer: I read a lot of books about Victoria of Sweden getting ready for this movie because she’s 26 years old. She’s a princess. And she is in a country, just in terms of how conservative it is, very similar to Genovia. She handles all the graceful, wonderful ball gowny type moments with absolute aplomb and graciousness but she’s also a very down-to-earth person. She is rarely seen without her golden retriever. She’s always in a t-shirt and jeans and she travels to the ends of the earth doing humanitarian work. She’s a really cool person so I based a lot of it on her.

Question: Do you have a physical fitness routine you follow because you are so slim and perfect?

Answer: Oh, eeek God, Thank you. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve been told to lose weight. I can’t believe it either. I come back two weeks later and say ‘can you tell I’ve lost five pounds?’ ‘Yes’ [whispering] and I didn’t do a fucking thing! [laughter].. all illusion, excuse me. I exercise four times a week whenever I can fit it into my schedule. I usually do cardio. About three times a week I run, I do interval running for about half an hour which is you walk for a minute and a half, run for a minute, walk for a minute, sprint for a minute. It’s great because it keeps your heart rate up but you don’t get tired so you can do it for longer and it’s a lot easier on your joints. On a treadmill usually but I try to go outside when I can. Then I do core strength training with weights and everything. I do this one really fun thing where there is this huge enormous weight with two ropes tied to it and you have to pull it and it’s called ‘the sled’. It’s ridiculous. And I also do kick boxing. When I have time I like to incorporate a few dance classes in there and Pilates, yoga is really important but I work out with a trainer at Peak Performance in New York.

Question: (comment on a lot of people her age just say oh, it’s just my genes. I don’t do anything).

Answer: Oh no! I work at it. Are you kidding? I think that’s because people don’t want to seem that they’re obsessed with it and I’ve always been active. I’ve been an athlete since I was four years old. I don’t like eating really bad food. My body doesn’t like it. I get crabby and irritable if I eat too much sugar and I can’t eat caffeine. I eat healthy, organic food. I’m a vegetarian and I really like working out so I’m a naturally active person. It’s not like I’m out there trying to be skinny. I’m just trying to live a life that I like.

Question: Is New York your home base?

Answer: Yeah.

Question: Are you looking to do something else, like an action movie?

Answer: I’m looking forward to getting hired in movies. You are always delighted when you get a part. I want to do everything. There’s no reason not to. I mean, I’ve got to say I’m more Alien than Lara Croft.

Question: When little girls come up to you, what is the question you get the most?

Answer: Can I have a hug? That is the question I get the most. Usually, they can’t talk. They can’t speak. They hyperventilate but usually, the only thing they do is jump forward and hug. I’m mean usually they are very, very shy so I do most of the talking because they’re little girls. They’re adorable. And usually, at the end, I’m like ‘so, can I get a hug before I go?’ and they grab my arms and I’m like ‘ooookay detach now’.

Question: When you were growing up did you have any screen idols that you hyperventilated over?

Answer: Julia Roberts. Pretty Woman was my Princess Diaries. I used to watch it like every day. Katherine Hepburn has always been one of mine, Jessica Lange is a very big one of mine. Sigourney Weaver. There are a lot. I was never a loyal fan in that I would go to see a movie just because someone was in it but the closest person I have every had like that is Drew Barrymore. I would see anything she’s in. I just adore her. I had such a friend crush on her. I’ve met her and I was so star struck. It was so funny because she looked at me and said ‘oh, my God, you’re so tall’ and I’m like ‘you’re so short’. She’s tiny and I think she thought I was the same and I’m like heloooo (indicates her height).

Question: What was it like when Julie Andrews sang (in this film)?

Answer: Oh, just another day on the set. No. Come on, it was brilliant. Julie is modest to a fault where she would say things like. ‘No, I’m just speak singing. It’s such a little moment in the film’. And I’m like ‘Andrews, lay off it’. Come on. When she’s in a room and there’s music, something about her, the air and the melody, whatever it may be, yields magic results. It’s amazing and I got to be the girl she was singing to. I’m jealous of myself.

Question: Now that you are more established and get more perks, do you have favorite designers?

Answer: I’m getting to know a lot of designers right now. I’m not particularly loyal like the way Ashley Judd is to Armani. But, there are a lot of great designers out there who have great pieces. I try to stay away from things that everybody is wearing just generally speaking because that’s just something I’ve always done. I think it’s because I’m a Scorpio because I’ll cut off my nose to spite my face but there are a lot of good ones out there. I love [SOUNDS LIKE: Zac Posin] like every girl under thirty. I love Ballenciaga. I think they are great and classic. In terms of just individual pieces, Joseph is great as is Theory. I love this store in New York called Searle, that’s really kind of my style. But, in terms of getting perk stuff, Juicy Couture is always very, very generous. There’s never a reason not to wear Juicy Couture.

Question: They’ve got a lot of hoodies.

Answer: Exactly. But that’s one of those things where I only wear them in my own home because I don’t like to wear the whole jumpsuit at the same time because I’m not Britney Spears.

Question: Can you see this going to a third film?

Answer: I can’t. The studio might. I’m not signed up for a third one. Honestly the next step is Mia goes God. So, technically, it’s the next step above it (Queen). So, I can’t imagine there’s anywhere else to go in this story. It was difficult enough to create a situation for a 21-year-old to be in a G-rated movie. A 24-year-old? I mean going around saying ‘shut up!’ At some point, when does the mutton admit that it’s not lamb.

Question: But if it were a really, really good script, would you be opposed to doing it?

Answer: No, I’m never opposed to good scripts at all but it would have to be a pretty great script.

Question: Do you have any ambitions to bet behind the camera or to write?

Answer: Of course. Both.

Talk about her singing and dancing.. We’d love to see her in a musical.